Trish Manning is an adventure travel writer and the content coordinator for Ontario Outdoor Adventures.

May 7, 2015

updated on: August 14, 2017

You don’t have to walk for days carrying a heavy backpack to experience the rugged beauty along Superior’s north shore. You can experience extraordinary panoramic vistas, isolated pebble beaches, and spectacular waterfalls with a base-camp hiking adventure package.

Local adventure providers are ready to help you plan a memorable, unique, and affordable hiking vacation. They have put together packages that include expert advice, meals, park passes, trail guides, maps, shuttle service, accommodation (or recommendation for accommodation), and more.

After spending the day hiking, you can enjoy delicious local food and sleep in a comfy bed. Combine several of the day hikes listed below to create a fabulous Canadian hiking holiday.

THUNDER BAY AREA HIKING ADVENTURES

1. Top of the Giant Trail

Round-trip Distance: 22 km
Hiking Time: 5 to 8 hours
Level: Difficult
When To Go: June to September

Climb to the top of one of Canada’s most iconic landforms—the Sleeping Giant, for an unobstructed view of the world’s largest lake. Wind your way through a boreal forest, dense with foliage and filled with birdsong, before ascending 2.7 km straight up the mountain. It’s worth the effort!

2. Eagle Canyon Suspension Bridge, Zipline & Trails

Round-trip Distance: Various
Hiking Time: 1 to 4 hours
Level: Easy
When To Go: June to September

Experience 183 metres of sheer exhilaration as you walk across the canyon on Canada’s longest suspension footbridge. Hike to the bottom and explore the canyon lake shoreline. For the ultimate thrill, zip down to the bottom of the canyon!

3. Ouimet Canyon

“Absolutely spectacular,” “must-see,” and “breathtaking views” are just a few of the comments on Trip Advisor describing visits to Ouimet Canyon, often described as the “Grand Canyon of the North.”

4. Nipigon River Recreation Trail

One-way Distance: 8 km (shuttle service is available)
Hiking Time: 3.5 to 7 hours
Level: Moderate
When To Go: June to September

Allow a full day to explore this 8-km trail along the rugged shoreline of the Lake Superior National Marine Conservation Area. Absorb the beauty of the landscape from numerous lookouts. Stop and listen to countless songbirds in a large wetland along the way. See majestic bald eagles and other wildlife.

7. Lake Superior Coastal Trail

Distance: Various (2 km to 65 km)
Hiking Time: various (1/2 hour to 7 days)
Level: Moderate to difficult
When To Go: June to September

A number of access points make it possible to spend one or several days hiking this scenic coastal trail. The most challenging and demanding trail in the park, this trail takes you over high cliffs, along boulder and sand beaches, and over rugged rocks.

8. Scenic High Falls Trail

If you like waterfalls, you’ll love this 5-km stretch of Voyageur trail along the Magpie River. Rugged yet featuring multiple access points, this trail offers a good margin of safety for novice hikers. Natural highlights include old-growth eastern white cedar trees deep in the river valley and a unique “stepping stone” section along the fringe of a rocky slope. The payoff is Scenic High Falls, a stunning 30-metre cascade.

9. Bridget Lake Trail

Distance: 8 km
Hiking Time: 4 to 6 hours one-way (canoe shuttle available from Driftwood Beach with Naturally Superior Adventures), 10 to 12 hours return
Level: Moderate
When To Go: May to September

You won’t actually see Bridget Lake on this trail, but you will experience challenging boreal forest terrain and sweeping views of Lake Superior’s wilderness coast. In the spring, watch for pink lady slipper orchids along open sections of the trail; throughout the season, you’ll encounter classic northern flora, including sphagnum moss, Labrador tea and black spruce. The trail ends at Driftwood Beach, one of the largest stretches of sand on Lake Superior’s Canadian shore—perfect for beachcombing!

10. Pancake Bay Lookout Trail

Round-trip Distance: 14 km
Hiking Time: 5-7 hours
Level: Moderate
When To Go: May to October

Watch for wildlife as you hike through sugar maples and yellow birches on route to platforms that offer magnificent views of the “graveyard of the Great Lakes”—the place where the legendary Edmund Fitzgerald sank in a fierce storm in 1975—and scenic Pancake River Falls. Read More: Pancake Bay Provincial Park

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Trish Manning is an adventure travel writer and the content coordinator for Ontario Outdoor Adventures. She is an avid outdoor person who loves to hike, paddle, SUP, snowshoe, cross-country ski and explore Ontario's great outdoors with her golden retriever, Daisy.